


A Hand on Her Heart

by Willowflower_Waterlily



Series: Marie Hawke and Rei Trevelyan [11]
Category: Dragon Age II, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-25
Updated: 2015-03-28
Packaged: 2018-03-19 14:07:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 6,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3612807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Willowflower_Waterlily/pseuds/Willowflower_Waterlily
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>There will be two or three chapters by the cave.</p>
        </blockquote>





	1. Fenris and Carver in Skyhold

Two men approached Rei and Anders from the gate as they discuss healing magic. Anders looked up and cursed under his breath. One of the men, an elf with white hair charged Anders. Rei was just able to put up a barrier before he reached them. "Fenris." Anders muttered, eyeing the elf. Behind Fenris was a tall man with dark hair and light eyes.

"Who the hell are you two, and why are you attacking my healer?" Rei asked, glaring at the two men.

"My name is Fenris, and my associate is Carver." Fenris replied, not taking his eyes off of Anders. "We've come to exact revenge on Anders, for killing Marie." Rei sighed and quickly thought up a plan.

"Anders, on my signal, run and get my husband." Rei said, drawing frost into her soul.

"No, they're here for me, I must face them." Anders said, softly.

"Do you or do you not belong to the Inquisition?" Rei asked, getting pissed off at the mage next to her.

"Yes... But..."

"No buts damn it, I am your Inquisitor, and you will do as I say!" Rei felt frost dance on her finger tips.

"What signal?" Anders asked.

"You won't miss it." Rei let the ice loose, wrapping around Fenris's and Carvers legs. "Go! Now! Go get Cullen!" She exclaims as the ice slowly starts to melt.

"Your husband is Knight-Captain Cullen?" Carver asked, looking confused. Rei nodded, and looked back and forth between both men.

"Whatever you may think, Anders did not kill Marie. He knew nothing about the ritual we performed until it was too late. Marie didn't tell me the risk either, or I would have made her wait." Fenris marched toward her, his ice melted away.

"You... You were part of that..." He growled, his hand turning blue and transparent. Before Rei could react, Fenris plunged his hand in her chest. "You will die, slowly, and painfully for what you've done." Rei gasped, and put her hands on his arm as she tried to breath. Collapsing to her knees she looked up at her killer.

"You are as much to blame as anyone, if not more so." Rei forced out. "You left her, broke her heart." She felt his hand tighten around her heart, and tears streamed down her cheeks as she has her life flash before her eyes. The last being of her daughters and how she had recently told Cullen that they would have the rest of their lives together.

"Any last words, mage." Fenris spat.

"Tell my daughters, that I love them. And tell Cullen, I'm sorry." She replied weakly.


	2. Fenris's Revelation

"Stop!" Carver exclaimed, grabbing Fenris's hand.

"Why should I?" He asked, squeezing Rei's heart tightly. Rei gasped, as she lay, curled around his hand.

"She's a mother." Carver said, looking down on her, "little girls will be losing their mother if you kill her, and a man his wife. Do you really want to create more suffering to exact your revenge on Anders?" Fenris looked down at Rei, and thought about it, idly playing with her heart as he did. A scream broke Fenris out of his thoughts as Cullen ran to Rei's side.

"Let her go damn it!" Cullen exclaimed, pointing his sword at Fenris. Slowly, Fenris pulled his hand out of Rei's chest, glaring at Cullen. "Rei? Rei!" Cullen said, panicking,as he gently shook her shoulders. "Please wake up."

"She will not." Fenris said evenly, "I poisoned the fingers on my gloves. There is no cure." Cullen's heart clenched, and a lump formed in his throat as he cradled Rei in his arms.

"No," Cullen said, whimpering, "we were supposed to have the rest of our lives together. You said so the other night." Carver grabbed Fenris's arm, as Anders knelt in front of Cullen and Rei. Healing magic swirled out of his hands and through her body. Sweat dripped down Anders's brow as he tried to rid Rei's body of the poison. Rei softly moaned, still unconscious in Cullen's arms when Anders finished casting. He slumped forward a little, catching himself with his hands. "Will she be okay?" Anders looked in his eyes and frowned.

"I don't know Cullen." Anders replied, before passing out.


	3. Fenris in a Cell, and Carver Questioned.

Fenris sat brooding in a cell under Skyhold. Once his anger dissipated, he started to feel guilt gnaw at him. When he looked up, he saw two girls looking at him. "What do you want?" He growled at them. Unfazed, they continued to stare at him.

"Why did you hurt my Mommy?" The dark haired girl asked, her chin quivering. 

"What did my Aunt ever do to you?" The brown haired girl added, trying to stare him down. If it were another time, Fenris would almost be amused by the little girl trying to be threatening to him. 

"The woman I love is dead because of what your Mother and Anders did." Fenris replied, trying not to get angry at the girls.

"You're wrong." A fourth voice said from the shadows. Cole stepped beside the girls, and frowned at Fenris, tilting his head. "Hawke knew what she was doing, purposefully withheld key information. Rei would have never of done it, had she known." Cole stared into Fenris. "You feel guilt. I should have never walked away from her, she would be alive. I loved her, why..."

"Enough!" Fenris shouted. "Begone, demon." Cole shook his head, and looked down at the girls. 

"Come with me, the Commander is looking for you. Worried." He held his hands out to Brena and Mina and they walked away from Fenris in his lonely cell.

 

Carver sat glaring at Cassandra. "I didn't know he had dipped his gloves in poison, had I known, I would have stopped him from even coming here. I would certainly have gotten between him and the Inquisitor." Cassandra stares at him, glaring.

"I believe you." She said quietly. "Why did you come?"

"My sister is dead, I thought that she was murdered." Carver replied, trying to keep his emotions in check. "Marie and I were never close, but she was the only family I had left. And now she's gone."

"You understand that because of what happened, a family will most likely be in mourning." Cassandra stated plainly, and Carver winced. "And it is because of you and your elf friend."

"I know." Carver said, looking down at his feet. "I know what it is like to lose a mother. I... Wish I could do something to make this right." 

"Pray that she survives." Cassandra said, scowling at Carver. "You did not do the deed, so we are not locking you up, but you will be followed to make sure you don't do anything." Carver nodded, wordlessly, before Cassandra walked out of the room.


	4. Brena's Anger

Cullen sat beside the bed holding Rei's hand as she lay in a coma. He prayed, begged the Maker to bring her back to him. She's survived so much, he thought, please don't let this be what kills her. Their daughter crawled into his lap as he keeps vigil over his wife, and snuggled into him. "When Mama waking up?" Isabel asked, her curly blonde hair getting into her eyes. 

"I don't know, little one." Cullen replied, trying not to sound grim. "Where are your sister and cousin?" He asked, trying to change the subject. Isabel shrugged, and crawled into bed beside Rei. She nuzzled against her mother and quickly fell asleep. Cullen found a little blanket and pulled it over his daughter and decided to go look for Brena and Mina. The search took longer than Cullen thought it would, and he began to worry, until he found the girls with Cole in his office. "Mina, Brena, I was looking all over for you. I was worried." 

"Why?" Brena demanded, crossing her arms in front of her, glaring like a petulant child. "Why didn't you save my Mommy?" Cullen's mouth dropped open and closed, as he stared at his step-daughter.  
"Brena, by the time Anders got to me, it was too late." Cullen said, trying think of how he could comfort her. He reached out for her, and she jerked away. 

"I wish my real Daddy were still alive." Brena said, with tears in her eyes as she turned and fled from his office. Cole and he exchanged a look and Cole nodded before going after her.

"Uncle Cullen." Mina said softly, sitting down next to a still stunned Cullen. "She knows it's not really your fault, Uncle Cullen. Brena is scared that she'll lose Aunt Rei, and is sad that she never met her Daddy." Cullen smiled at his niece, and nodded.

"I understand." He said, "I just wish there was something I could do to help her." 

"Cole will help." Mina said, smiling. "He's always good at helping people."


	5. Don't You Dare!

Cole appeared before Brena in her hiding spot , in an abandoned room in a tower on the battlement. "He worries for you. Scared for your mommy." Cole said as Brena sulked in a corner. "And guilt. I should have been by her side. If only I had been there sooner... It should be me, not her. The girls need her, I need her. We were supposed to have forever." Cole whimpered, as Brena stared at him, wide eyed.

"I was so mean to him." Brena said, as a tear rolled down her cheek. She got up, and walked into Cole's embrace and sobbed into his chest. When she stopped crying, she looked up at Cole and said, "I need to go see Cullen and tell him I'm sorry."

"He understands." Cole replied. "Go to your Mommy." Brena nodded, and walked back toward the keep.

 

Anders was standing beside Rei's bed, trying to keep her stable with his magic, while Dorian mixed a potion he hoped would bring her back to them. "And you're sure Fenris was being honest?" Anders asked. 

"Yes, I'm positive." Dorian replied. "I've heard of the poison he used, it's Tevinter."

"Bren." Rei breathed, and her body began to shake. Anders doubled his effort trying to keep her stable.

"Don't you dare!" He cried, "stay with us!" Dorian rushed over and added his magic to Anders's, and between the two of them, they managed to stabilize her once more. Anders wiped the sweat from his brow, and downed a lyrium potion from his pack as Dorian finished the antidote. Gradually, they poured it into her mouth and helped her swallow it by massaging her throat. They stood by her side, hoping for a change, and saw no improvement. Dorian frowned and went back to the book he pulled from the library.

"There must be something this book is missing." Dorian said, as he watched his best friend lay in a coma. He pushed the fear out of his heart and tried to focus on finding a cure. A silence fell in the room as the two men retreated into their own minds. Brena entered the room, and went to her mother's side.

"Can I lay down with my Mommy?" Brena asked Anders. 

"Yes, of course little one." Anders said, and pulled the covers down for her, so she could get under them with Rei. He watched as she curled up next to Rei, and rested her head on her side before drifting off to sleep.


	6. Time Passes

Days passed, and there was no improvement to Rei's condition. Cullen spent as much time by her side as he could, and Brena would curl up with her at night. Cole kept the girls preoccupied when they weren't attending to their studies, by taking them to hidden places around the keep, and playing with them in the garden. Dorian sent messages back to friends in Tevinter, hoping one of them would have something, anything that would lead to a cure. 

 

Anders was in Rei and Cullen's room throughout the day, doing whatever he could to keep her stabilized. He grew frustrated as the days passed, he knew he was a better healer than this. He started to feel as though his magic was failing him, and her his friend. One evening, Brena stood beside him, as he cast his magic. When he finished, she slipped her hand in his and looked up at him. "Thank you for helping my Mommy." She said.

"I wish I could do more." He replied, frustrated. "I first met here when the circle in Ostwick fell. Did she ever tell you?" Brena shook her head. "It doesn't surprise me, she was going through a rough time then."

"Did you know my Daddy?" Brena asked, and Anders felt conflicted. Looking down at her, he saw the resemblance between her and the tranquil, Bren.

"I saw him, but I didn't know him." Anders replied carefully, and Brena looked confused. "When Marie and I found the survivors of the circle, he was a tranquil and had been for years. When we hid, Marie and I found your mommy with him, and I was so mad that I let the spirit that was in me take over, and he became him again."

"Then why did he die?" Brena asked, angrily, "if you could bring him back, why did he have to die?"

"Because, it was temporary. He begged your Mommy to let him go." Anders replied, placing a comforting hand on Brena's shoulder. "Love doesn't always mean forcing someone to stay alive, if they are in a condition like he was in. " Brena's chin quivered and a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Am I going to lose my Mommy too?" She asked, her voice shaking. 

"Not if I can help it, little one." Anders said, with determination in his voice. "It's getting late, how about you go to sleep. I'll be back in the morning." Brena nodded, and climbed into bed beside Rei.


	7. Brena, the Cave, and Meeting Bren

Rei stood on a cliff, overlooking the Waking Sea, the skirt of her pale dress fluttering in the breeze. Behind her was the cave she and other ran to, what seemed like a lifetime ago. "Mommy." Said a voice behind her. Rei turned around and saw Brena by the mouth of the cave.

"Brena!" Rei exclaimed, running to her daughter. She picked her up and hugged her warmly, before putting her down again. "How did you get here, my little love?" 

"I don't know." Brena said, shrugging. "I went to sleep and I ended up here." 

"She may have had a little help." A third voice added. Rei's gaze jerked up in surprise, and she gasped as Bren stood before her. 

"Bren." She said softly, and their daughter looked up at her father, for the first time. He knelt down in front of her and wrapped his arms around her.

"My little girl." He said, his voice full of emotion. Tears rolled down all of their cheeks, as they at long last had their family together. "I wish I could be there for you, to see you growing up." Brena looked him in the eyes, and frowned before she looked up at her mommy.

"Is my Mommy going to die?" Brena asked, turning her gaze back to her daddy. Rei's breath hitched as she remembered the attack. She sank to her knees, as she thought of all the people she would be leaving behind. Brena faced her mommy again. "Please don't die." She said, crying, "I need you, and Isabel, and Cullen, and and..." Brena's shoulders shook as she buried her face into her Mommy's neck, and sobbed. Rei and Bren exchanged a look, and he sank down behind Brena, wrapping his arms around both of them. 

"I will always do everything I can to come back to you, no matter what." Rei whispered into her daughter's ear. "If I can't this time, know that I will always love you. My first born, my pride and joy." Brena nodded her head in understanding, as she relaxed in her parents' arms. "It's about time for you to wake up, little one. Please tell Cullen I'm trying my hardest to come back to you all, and I love him." Brena kissed her mommy's cheek before disappearing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be two or three chapters by the cave.


	8. Cullen's Fear

Cullen woke up to Brena shaking his arm. She climbed on to his lap and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I'm sorry I was mean, Cullen." She said looking up at him. "I know that you're sad too, and I shouldn't take out my sadness on you." Cullen hugs her, and kisses the top of her head.

"It's okay little one, " Cullen said, "I understand."

"I had a dream with Mommy." Brena said, "and Daddy was there too." Cullen tried to suppress showing his shock and anxiety. 

"Tell me about this dream. Maybe we should tell Anders and Dorian too." Cullen said, as he tried to keep his voice even.

"Tell me what?" Anders said as he walked up to the bed.

"I had a dream with my Mommy and Daddy." Brena said. "We were by the sea, on a cliff, and there was a cave behind us." Anders's eyes widened, and he waited for her to continue. "We all hugged and cried, and Mommy told me that she was trying to come back to us, and that if she didn't that she would always love me.: Cullen tried to reign in his emotions in front of Brena. "And Daddy called me his little girl, and said he wished he could be here for me." Cullen and Anders looked at one another, and Cullen gave him a look pleading for him to help.

"Brena, how about you go get some breakfast." Anders said, understanding Cullen's expression. "If anything changes, we'll let you know." Brena gives Cullen a quick kiss on his cheek and heads down to the main hall. After the door closed behind her, Cullen covered his face with his hands and sobbed. Anders placed his hand on Cullen's shoulder, in a vain attempt to comfort him. "I swear to you that Dorian and I will do everything in our power to bring her back to you."

"I know, Anders." Cullen said, tears flooding his cheeks.

"But there is... Something you must know." Cullen looked up, fear etched into his features. "The place Brena described, it was where Marie and I took those that were left of the Ostwick circle to hide before we could get them on a ship to Ferelden. It was where Brena's father died." Cullen's heart stopped, and he momentarily forgot how to breath. Almost falling out of his chair, he knelt beside the bed and slipped Rei's hand between his own. 

"Please don't leave me, my love, my wife, my future, my whole world." Cullen said, sobbing as he clutched her hand. Anders stood beside him, and cast his magic on Rei. 

"I'm going to check in on Dorian." Anders said, his heart hurting for Cullen and the girls. "If there's anything else I can do for you, you need only ask. Cullen nodded, and Anders left him to keep vigil over Rei.


	9. Rei and Bren

Rei stared at Bren after their daughter faded away. "How are either of us here?" She asked quietly, unsure if she wanted to know.

"You're dying, love." Bren said, taking her hands in his. "So you willed the fade to look like the place I died, and I came to be with you." Rei silently shook her head, tears spilling over, streaming down her cheeks.

"I can't." Rei whispered, "I need to live. My girls, my niece, my husband, my friends." Bren wrapped his arms around Rei and held her.

"I wish I could do more. I wish I was alive." Bren said softly, "I was a healer. I could have helped to try and save you." 

"But you were tranquil when you were alive." Rei said, looking in his eyes. 

"I know, but I want to help you, somehow." Bren replied, as he leaned in and planted a kiss on her forehead. 

"If I can't survive, I wish that I could see Cullen one last time." Rei said after a while. Bren nodded, and flashed a sad smile at her.

"I'm glad you moved on." He said softly. "Is he a good man?"

"He is, you would have liked him." Rei said, her eyes soft as she thought about Cullen. "I didn't know it at first, we fought a lot when I first met him. When I saw him, I saw a Templar, but he wasn't like the ones in our circle. He's kind and considerate, and I love him."

"I'll do whatever I can to help you." Bren said, as he guided Rei into the cave.


	10. Cole's Prayer

Dorian ran up the stairs in Rei and Cullen's room, excited. "One of my friends sent an ointment and a potion to me that he said would cure the poison." Anders and Cullen looked at one another, cautiously letting hope into their hearts. Dorian took the ointment and rubbed it into her chest over her heart, and Anders carefully administered the potion. "He said it would take a day to go into effect, but with what we've been doing, it should work." 

"Should work?" Cullen asked, given his friend a skeptical look.

"Nothing is one hundred percent effective, we just have to wait and pray." Dorian said, as he prayed to himself. Cullen left to check on the girls, while Dorian and Anders kept an eye on Rei. "So this dream Brena had..." Dorian began.

"I don't know what it might mean." Anders said, "but I'm praying it doesn't mean what I thought when I heard it."

"Which is?" Dorian prodded.

"That she is dying." Anders said quietly. Cole appeared in the room with them, and sat beside Rei in the bed. His eyes looked sad as he stared at his friend.

"Draw your last breath, my friends. Cross the Veil and the Fade and all the stars in the sky," Cole chanted, "rest at the Maker's right hand, and be forgiven." Rei's breathing slowed, and stopped.

"No!" Anders screamed, and pushed a revival spell through his hands, before using every healing spell that came to mind, while Dorian pressed his hand against Rei's chest and tried to start her heart with jolts from a lightening spell. Cullen raced up the steps, and fell to his knees at the top of the steps, crying as he watched his friends try to revive his love. After what seems like an eternity, Rei's heart starts again, and she's breathing, but only just. Dorian and Anders helped Cullen to his feet, and sat him in the chair by the bed. "We will stay here with you, throughout the night. Have the children stay with Josephine tonight, or Cassandra." Cullen nodded numbly, his heart breaking as he strained to hear Rei's breathing, he chest barely visibly moving with each breath.

"I'll let Josephine know." Dorian said, as he excused himself from the room.

"I'm so sorry, Cullen." Anders said, tears silently making paths down his cheeks as he looked at his friend. "There isn't anything more I can do then pray. If the treatments Dorian's friend sent don't work, I'm afraid all I can do is keep her like this, and I am not sure for how much longer I can do that."

"I... I understand." Cullen said, feeling as though a part of him broke off and is drifting away from him.

"Lay down beside her, hold her." Anders said, "and pray." Cullen got into bed beside Rei and wrapped his arms around her.


	11. Cullen, Rei, and Bren

Cullen didn't know when he fell asleep, but he knew that he had to be in the fade. He looked around, and remembered Brena's dream. He heard the crach of the surf as it hit rocks below and he faced a cave. And the mouth of the cave was a man with dark hair and light eyes. "Bren." He said, and the man nodded.

"You must be Cullen." Bren said, looking him over. Cullen felt as though he were a piece of meat being examined. "Rei has told me much about you."

"Where is she?" Cullen asked, as he tried to look into the dark cave.

"She is in the cave behind me, before we go in, I must ask," Bren said. "If there is no saving her, do you love her enough to let her move on?" Cullen's breath caught, stuck behind the lump that formed in his throat. The emotions he felt as he though how to answer the question overwhelmed him, and he had to force himself to stay standing.

"If there is no other choice." Cullen responded miserably. "I... I..." He buried his face in his hands and sobbed. Bren walked up to him, and placed his hand on Cullen's shoulder.

"I understand." Bren said, sympathy laced in his voice.

"Cullen?" Rei asked, as she stood at the mouth of the cave. Cullen looked up at her, and she ran toward him, and flung herself into his arms. "Cullen, I'm so sorry." She cried into his chest.

"No." Cullen said weakly. "Please, don't leave me." he wrapped his arms around her, and held her tight as though through sheer force of will, he could save her. "Dorian had a friend send a treatment for you, it's supposed to work, but will take a full day to activate. Please." Cullen begged, "please try to hold on."

"I will try, my love." Rei said softly. She kissed him, deeply, with all her heart, just in case it was to be their last kiss. "But... If I don't... Please know that I love you, and I always will."

"As will I, my wife." Cullen replied as he rested his head on her shoulder. Bren looked on as they held one another, and hoped that she would live. 

"I think you're going to wake up soon," Rei said, pulling away from him. Cullen leaned in and kissed her once more. "I love you, husband."

"I love you too, wife." Cullen replied. As he started to return to consciousness, he stared at Rei's face and watched as Bren held her hand.


	12. Waiting and Praying

Cullen woke with a start and looked around the room. Dorian was asleep inn the vacated chair, and Anders was pacing on the balcony. Cullen got out of bed and went to Anders. "I had a dream of Rei and Bren." Cullen told Anders in a low tone. "I... I am afraid..." Anders nodded, and walked past him, to check on Rei.

"Her breathing has improved." Anders said, as he scanned her. "Her heart beat is stronger, but it is still weaker than I would like." He rubbed his face, and yawned. "Hopefully, it's the treatment we gave her yesterday finally kicking in. Keep an eye on her, and pray. I need to go lay down for a few hours, or I won't be any use to her." Cullen nodded, and bid Anders a good rest. Dorian snorted softly, and tried to turn over in the chair, and promptly fell out, waking himself as he landed.

"I'm all right." He said sitting up. "Ah, good, you're awake. Is there any improvement."

"Some." Cullen said, as he begged the Maker and Andraste to help Rei pull through.

"There's still a few hours before it will be fully effective." Dorian replied, as Cassandra walked up the stairs, and went to Cullen's side.

"There are a couple of matters I wish to discuss with you." Cassandra said, in a very business like manner. "Mainly, what do you want us to do with Fenris and Carver?"

"Carver didn't actually do anything, though he did come here with intent." Cullen said, thinking it through. "Give him the choice of either joining the Inquisition, or sitting in a cell for attempted murder. Keep Fenris in his cell, until either I or Rei deal with him."

"Will she pull through?" Cassandra asked, looking down at Rei.

"Pray." Cullen said, "it's all we can do now." Cassandra nodded, and left to have a word with Carver.

"Why did you offer Carver a place with the Inquisition?" Dorian asked.

"He joined the Templars in Kirkwall when Hawke went into the Deep Roads with Varric." Cullen explained, "he's got a hot head, but he's loyal and a good soldier push come to shove."

 

As the day progressed, there were more signs of improvement in Rei, but it was much slower than Cullen would have liked. He feared that the improvements wouldn't last, and he would lose her. The girls visited before lunch, and the remaining members of Rei's inner circle visited through out the day. Anders appeared again, in the early evening to check on Rei's progress. He scanned her body, and frowned. "What?" Cullen asked, anxiously, "What is it? What's the matter?"

"Rei is not improving like I had hoped she would." Anders stated, "it's been almost a full day since we gave her the treatment, and while her breathing and heart beat have improved, it isn't by as much as I thought it would by now." Cullen sat down in the chair, shaking. "On the positive side, though, she hasn't gotten worse."

"What if she stays like this?" Cullen asked, horrified of it being a possibility.

"That would be up to you." Anders replied. "Could you leave her like this for the rest of her life? We've been giving her fluids, but she would waste away, eventually. No one can be sustained like this indefinitely."

"I... I wouldn't keep her like this." Cullen said, as tears blurred his vision. "If I have to, I will..." Cullen stopped, his voice unwilling to finish this thought, and he looked up at Anders and saw that he understood what Cullen was going to say.

"If she doesn't improve in a day or two..." Anders said, his heart heavy at the thought of losing his friend. 

"I understand." Cullen said quietly, and prayed with his whole being that she would come back to him.


	13. An Improvement

Cullen and Anders gathered Brena and Mina together in their room, to talk to them about Rei's condition. Brena looked up at them both as they entered the room, and her eyes filled with tears. "Girls we need to have a discussion." Anders began, and Brena started to sob. Cullen went to her and picked her up, so he could comfort her as she cried. Mina looked from Cullen, who had tears in his eyes, to Anders, who had an expression of worry and guilt on his face, and frowned.

"Is Aunt Rei going to be okay?" Mina asked quietly. Cullen opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't will himself to verbalize his thoughts.

"She has slightly improved, but if she doesn't improve significantly, she may remain like she is now, or slowly slip away." Anders said, "I am sorry." Cullen and Anders looked at one another over the girls' heads, and Anders slipped quietly out of the room while Cullen stayed to comfort the girls.

 

As he climbed the stairs in Rei and Cullen's room, he saw Isabel sitting next to Rei on the bed. As Anders took a deep breath, he steadied his emotions and tried to have a neutral expression on his face. "Shouldn't you be with Josephine, little one?" He asked her. Isabel nodded slowly, but didn't make any attempt to move.

"Mommy want me here." Isabel said, insistently. "I dream with her." Anders stared at Isabel and shrugged. The toddler curled up next to Rei, and quickly fell asleep. Cullen came up with Brena and Mina not long after, and shot Anders a questioning look. Anders relayed what Isabel said, and shrugged again.

"Has she improved any?" Cullen asked.

"I'll let you know in a moment." Anders said as he summoned magic to his hands. He scanned Rei, carefully avoiding Isabel as he did. He made a 'hmm' noise, and did another scan. "She has improved more than I thought she would, but less than I would want her to." 

"Could it be because of Isabel?" Brena asked. 

"Possibly." Anders said. Mina and Brena exchanged a look, and climbed into bed, and lay down next to Rei and Isabel. Cullen gestured for Anders to follow him out to the balcony.

"Are we giving them false hope?" Cullen asked, as he looked in the room.

"I'm not sure." Anders answered, puzzled. "It wouldn't hurt for her to have them around, even if she doesn't make it, the children will feel like they helped." Cullen nodded, and went back inside.


	14. Awake!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was decided by a roll of the dice. 10, 12, 13. (I had scenes for if she lived or not thought out.)

Rei woke up, and the sun was shining brightly, casting colors through the room. She looked around her and smiled. Her girls were asleep on either side of her, Cullen asleep in the chair, and Anders at her desk. Isabel woke up first, and smiled at Rei. "Good morning, Mommy." She said. 

"Good morning, my little one." Rei said, her voice cracking. Brena and Mina wake up at the sound of her voice, and Brena buried her head in her Mommy's chest and cried. Rei rubbed her back, and whispered comforting words, as Anders woke up. He stared at her and made a startled noise, before he pinched his arm. Satisfied that he was awake, he summoned magic and did a scan.

"You're... I..." Anders stuttered. He was so relieved that she woke up, tears built up in his eyes. "You were out for two weeks, we were... Losing hope. It was all I could do to keep you stable and keep fluids in you." Anders got a cup from the night table and filled it with water. Rei nodded in thanks as she held it in her hands and took a sip.

"You, um, had help." Rei said softly. "Bren was an accomplished spirit healer before he was made tranquil. He tried to heal me when I was out. Stayed with me until I was healed." Isabel climbed out of the bed and onto Cullen's lap.

"Daddy." Isabel said, shaking Cullen's shoulders. "Daddy wake up!" Cullen opened his eyes and saw his daughter's face was three inches from his. 

"Good morning, Isabel." He said and yawned.

"Good morning, my love." Rei said, and Cullen looked at the bed, a number of emotions crossing his face, before it seemed he decided on relief. Cullen placed Isabel on the bed, and climbed in, beside Rei, gently kissing all over her face.

"I was so scared." Cullen said, tears streaming down his face. "I thought I was going to lose you, that you were going to die, or worse stay as you were permanently." He bowed his head and sobbed. Rei reached up and cupped his cheek in her hand.

"I told you that I would do whatever I can to come back to you and the girls." Rei said, in a soothing voice. "Bren asked me to pass a message on. He said that he's glad I found some one like you, and asked that you take care of our little girl as though she is your own blood."

"I will, always." Cullen said, as he looked over at Brena. "There has never been a moment that I didn't think of her as my little girl." Brena smiled at him, he reached out to her and pulled her into a hug.

"Thank you Anders." Rei said, "You and Dorian helped save me." 

"It was my pleasure." Anders said, smiling at his friend. "We almost lost you twice though... I was scared that there would be a third time, and that I wouldn't be enough." Dorian bounded up the stairs, and nearly fell over when he saw Rei was awake. He crawled into the bed, and wrapped his arms around Rei.

"Don't you ever do that to me again." Dorian said, pretending to reprimand Rei. "Who knows how many grays you've cause me, and wrinkles!" Rei laughed, and planted a kiss on her best friend's forehead.

"I promise I will do my best to not almost die again." Rei said. "At least not until I'm old."


	15. Judgement and That Night

As Rei continued to recover, she decided that Fenris aught to be brought up for judgement. However, instead of in the main hall, she would judge him from her bed. "Do you think this wise, Inquisitor?" Cassandra asked, as Cullen and Anders walked him into the room.

"Trust me on this, Cassandra." Rei replied. She faced Fenris, and looked him over. "Your crime is trying to murder Anders, a member of the Inquisition, and almost murdering myself. What would you say in your defense?"

"I have no good defense to give." Fenris said, "I did not truly wish to harm you, but I was so angry that day. So full of hate for him." He gestured at Anders. Rei nodded, and waited for him to continue. When he did not, she thought on her judgement.

"Many people would see you executed for what occurred, but I can't do that." Rei stated, looking Fenris in the eyes. He seemed surprised that she would spare his life. "I understand what it is to hate, and to use an intense anger to want to harm others. She sat up, and motioned for him to come closer. The front of her body was covered by her bedding, but her back was exposed. A strangled noise escaped Fenris's throat when he saw her scars. "Templars." She said softly. "They did this to me when I was in the circle. I had such an intense hatred for anyone of the order that it took me time to work through it. And I did, of course. In part because of Cullen, and the Templars that are with us. It's time to let your hate go, and your guilt."

"I don't know how." Fenris said miserably.

"Start by forgiving yourself for walking away from Marie." Rei replied, " and let go of your hatred for Anders."

"But he is an abomination." Rei shook her head, and Fenris looked at her puzzled.

"The ritual that Marie and I did was to extract the demon from him. He is no longer an abomination, or a Grey Warden. He is just a man, trying to live up to the gift the woman he loved had given him." Rei said, and extended a hand to him. "Join us."

"You would have me in the Inquisition, after all I've done?" Fenris asked, in awe.

"Everyone deserves a second chance." Rei replied, and smiled as he shook her hand.

"I will do my best to make up for what I've done."

"That's all anyone can ask." Rei said, and watched Fenris and Anders walk away together.

 

Cullen went off to attend to work, but he and the girls would visit throughout the day. That night, Cullen came back, after tucking the girls in and reading them a story. Rei watched him as he carefully took his armor and clothing off and joined her in bed. "I was so afraid, my love." He said quietly as he wrapped his arms around her. Rei let herself be pulled close to him, and nuzzled into his neck.

"I know my heart. I was afraid too." Rei said, "when I saw Bren, and he told me I was dying, I was scared I would never see you or the girls again." A stray tear rolled down her cheek, Cullen gently brushed it away and kissed her. They looked into each others' eye, bright with unshed tears and thanked the Maker for being able to have more time together.


End file.
